MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER

November 27, 2012MLS AWARDSYallop-Coach of the Year; Johnson-Comeback Player

NEW YORK – San Jose Earthquakes head coach Frank Yallop has been named Major League Soccer's Coach of the Year and the Seattle Sounders Eddie Johnson has been voted Comeback Player of the Year.

This season Yallop led the San Jose Earthquakes to its second Supporters’ Shield in club history, a drastic turnaround from the club’s 14th place finish in 2011. Yallop and the Earthquakes fell just two points shy of the MLS single-season points record, set by LA Galaxy in 1998 (68 points).

With 114 regular season wins, Yallop is tied for fourth overall in MLS history with current Houston Dynamo coach Dominic Kinnear. As a coach, Yallop has made five trips to the MLS Cup Playoffs and claimed two MLS Cup titles (2001, 2003) during his ten year career.

The award was voted on by media, MLS players and MLS club management based on regular season performance. The other two finalists were D.C United’s Ben Olsen and Sporting Kansas City’s Peter Vermes.

After struggling to find consistency for three years playing in Europe, Eddie Johnson returned to Major League Soccer to join Seattle Sounders FC ahead of the 2012 season. The move resurrected Johnson’s career for both club and country.

Johnson regained his form this season, scoring 14 goals and recording three assists in 28 games played to help the Sounders FC reach the MLS Cup playoffs for the fourth consecutive year. In October, Johnson received his first United States national team call up since May 2010. He scored two decisive goals against Antigua and Barbuda, which propelled the U.S. into the hexagonal round of World Cup Qualifying.

This is Johnson’s second Comeback Player of the Year award. He previously received the honor in 2007 when he scored 15 goals for the Kansas City Wizards after only scoring twice in the season prior.

The award was voted on by media, MLS players and MLS club management based on regular season performance. The other two finalists were D.C United midfielder Chris Pontius and San Jose Earthquakes forward Alan Gordon.